New Found planet could support Life
- Thread starter THE KOD
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Planet-hunters say they have detected a giant world that is nestled among four others in a planetary system 41 light-years from Earth. This newfound world is in the "Goldilocks zone" - a place that's not too hot, not too cold, but just right for the existence of liquid water and conceivably life.
The fresh discovery, announced today during a NASA teleconference, focuses on a star and planetary system called 55 Cancri, in the constellation Cancer. The system is already well-known to astronomers who search for the telltale signs of planets beyond our own solar system - but the newly detected planet has taken the search to a new level.
"We're announcing the discovery of the first quintuple-planet system," Debra Fischer, an astronomer at San Francisco State University and lead author of a paper due to appear in the Astrophysical Journal, told reporters.
Geoff Marcy, a pioneer planet-hunter from the University of California at Berkeley who contributed to the paper, said the planetary system is a "souped-up" version of our own. Like our own solar system, these planets make nearly circular orbits around the parent star - but they're super-sized.
The innermost planet is about the size of Neptune and whips around the parent star in less than three days, at a distance of about 3.5 million miles. The farthest-out planet is four times as massive as Jupiter and takes 14 Earth years to orbit, at a distance of about 539 million miles - or just a little farther out than our solar system's Jupiter.
The planets in between are in the range of Jupiter and Saturn, but the most interesting one is the fourth rock from its sun: a world 45 times the mass of Earth, perhaps a gas giant similar to Saturn or Neptune in composition and appearance. That planet is about 72.5 million miles out from the parent star, in an orbit that's similar to Venus' orbit.
55 Cancri is slightly fainter than our own sun - and that would put the newly detected planet in a habitable zone that should allow water to remain liquid on a rocky surface, astronomers say.
A gas giant isn't a likely suspect in the search for life - but any rocky moons around it would be. Just as Jupiter's moon Europa and Saturn's moon Enceladus hold promise for astrobiologists, a moon around the newly detected planet could conceivably be a prime suspect in the search.
"Such a moon would have to be fairly massive," Marcy cautioned. "In fact, it would have to be about as massive as the planet Mars ? in order to retain its water."
Jonathan Lunine, a planetary scientist at the University of Arizona, said temperatures on this hypothetical moon might be just a little bit warmer than temperatures on Earth. But like Marcy, Lunine said a bit of caution was in order. "I would recommend not buying real estate on any of these planets" until more readings were available, he said.
Marcy said the discovery of the fifth planet "has me jumping out of my socks" - not just because of the habitable-zone angle, but because it indicates that planetary systems like our own appear to be more common than astronomers thought just a few years ago.
The new planet, like the four other ones, was detected using the Doppler radial-velocity technique, in which a planet's gravitational tug is detected by the wobble it produces in the parent star. In a long-running project funded by NASA and the National Science Foundation, observations of 55 Cancri were collected using telescopes at the Lick Observatory in California and the Keck Observatory in Hawaii.
The method is one of the most time-honored tricks for finding extrasolar planets - but it takes a long time to gather enough information about the complex wobbles to identify multiple planets in a system. More than 350 velocity measurements were required to untangle the wobbly pattern created by the planets at 55 Cancri.
"Discovering these five planets took us 18 years of continuous observations at Lick Observatory, starting before any extrasolar planets were known anywhere in the universe," Marcy said in a NASA announcement. "But finding five extrasolar planets orbiting a star is only one small step. Earthlike planets are the next destination."
As currently used, the Doppler technique isn't sensitive enough to detect planets around the mass of our own - but Fischer said an intriguing orbital gap in the 55 Cancri system is big enough to harbor Earthlike planets that could be found in the future using more precise techniques.
"There could be 10 Earthlike planets there, but we've just not detected them yet," Fischer said.
Finding new Earths around sunlike stars would be a "holy grail" for planet-hunters, Lunine said. Such worlds could harbor alien life, or not. Either way, the quest could answer humanity's deepest questions about life, the universe and everything.
But like all quests, this one has its bumps in the road: Marcy and Fischer noted that one of the extrasolar planets that was once thought to be potentially hospitable to life, Gliese 581c, is now said to be too hot rather than just right. (There's a debate about that.)
To reach the true grail, scientists will have to develop new ground-based telescopes and launch new spacecraft such as NASA's Kepler probe and Europe's Darwin flotilla. Most importantly, they'll have to cast a wide, wide net.
"If you asked me where the right place would be to look for Earthlike planets," Lunine said, "my answer would be anywhere, and everywhere."
Last updated 2:51 p.m. ET
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The fresh discovery, announced today during a NASA teleconference, focuses on a star and planetary system called 55 Cancri, in the constellation Cancer. The system is already well-known to astronomers who search for the telltale signs of planets beyond our own solar system - but the newly detected planet has taken the search to a new level.
"We're announcing the discovery of the first quintuple-planet system," Debra Fischer, an astronomer at San Francisco State University and lead author of a paper due to appear in the Astrophysical Journal, told reporters.
Geoff Marcy, a pioneer planet-hunter from the University of California at Berkeley who contributed to the paper, said the planetary system is a "souped-up" version of our own. Like our own solar system, these planets make nearly circular orbits around the parent star - but they're super-sized.
The innermost planet is about the size of Neptune and whips around the parent star in less than three days, at a distance of about 3.5 million miles. The farthest-out planet is four times as massive as Jupiter and takes 14 Earth years to orbit, at a distance of about 539 million miles - or just a little farther out than our solar system's Jupiter.
The planets in between are in the range of Jupiter and Saturn, but the most interesting one is the fourth rock from its sun: a world 45 times the mass of Earth, perhaps a gas giant similar to Saturn or Neptune in composition and appearance. That planet is about 72.5 million miles out from the parent star, in an orbit that's similar to Venus' orbit.
55 Cancri is slightly fainter than our own sun - and that would put the newly detected planet in a habitable zone that should allow water to remain liquid on a rocky surface, astronomers say.
A gas giant isn't a likely suspect in the search for life - but any rocky moons around it would be. Just as Jupiter's moon Europa and Saturn's moon Enceladus hold promise for astrobiologists, a moon around the newly detected planet could conceivably be a prime suspect in the search.
"Such a moon would have to be fairly massive," Marcy cautioned. "In fact, it would have to be about as massive as the planet Mars ? in order to retain its water."
Jonathan Lunine, a planetary scientist at the University of Arizona, said temperatures on this hypothetical moon might be just a little bit warmer than temperatures on Earth. But like Marcy, Lunine said a bit of caution was in order. "I would recommend not buying real estate on any of these planets" until more readings were available, he said.
Marcy said the discovery of the fifth planet "has me jumping out of my socks" - not just because of the habitable-zone angle, but because it indicates that planetary systems like our own appear to be more common than astronomers thought just a few years ago.
The new planet, like the four other ones, was detected using the Doppler radial-velocity technique, in which a planet's gravitational tug is detected by the wobble it produces in the parent star. In a long-running project funded by NASA and the National Science Foundation, observations of 55 Cancri were collected using telescopes at the Lick Observatory in California and the Keck Observatory in Hawaii.
The method is one of the most time-honored tricks for finding extrasolar planets - but it takes a long time to gather enough information about the complex wobbles to identify multiple planets in a system. More than 350 velocity measurements were required to untangle the wobbly pattern created by the planets at 55 Cancri.
"Discovering these five planets took us 18 years of continuous observations at Lick Observatory, starting before any extrasolar planets were known anywhere in the universe," Marcy said in a NASA announcement. "But finding five extrasolar planets orbiting a star is only one small step. Earthlike planets are the next destination."
As currently used, the Doppler technique isn't sensitive enough to detect planets around the mass of our own - but Fischer said an intriguing orbital gap in the 55 Cancri system is big enough to harbor Earthlike planets that could be found in the future using more precise techniques.
"There could be 10 Earthlike planets there, but we've just not detected them yet," Fischer said.
Finding new Earths around sunlike stars would be a "holy grail" for planet-hunters, Lunine said. Such worlds could harbor alien life, or not. Either way, the quest could answer humanity's deepest questions about life, the universe and everything.
But like all quests, this one has its bumps in the road: Marcy and Fischer noted that one of the extrasolar planets that was once thought to be potentially hospitable to life, Gliese 581c, is now said to be too hot rather than just right. (There's a debate about that.)
To reach the true grail, scientists will have to develop new ground-based telescopes and launch new spacecraft such as NASA's Kepler probe and Europe's Darwin flotilla. Most importantly, they'll have to cast a wide, wide net.
"If you asked me where the right place would be to look for Earthlike planets," Lunine said, "my answer would be anywhere, and everywhere."
Last updated 2:51 p.m. ET
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THE STAR
55 Cancri is a mid-sixth magnitude star (magnitude 5.95) class G (G8) dwarf 41 years away. A bit cooler (5280 Kelvin) and carrying only 0.87 of a solar mass, it shines at just 58 percent of the luminosity of the Sun, its radius 0.9 solar. Like most stars with planets, 55 Cnc is rich in metals, its iron content (relative to hydrogen) quite high, 2.2 times that of the Sun. 55 Cancri is also a double star . Moving along with it through space is a dim 13th magnitude (13.7) class M red dwarf (probably M6) that is at least 1040 AU away and takes at least 30,000 years to orbit. From 55 Cancri's planets, the neighbor would shine somewhat dimmer than Venus at her maximum as seen from Earth.
Written by Jim Kaler. Return to The Planet Project or go to STARS.
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55 Cancri is a mid-sixth magnitude star (magnitude 5.95) class G (G8) dwarf 41 years away. A bit cooler (5280 Kelvin) and carrying only 0.87 of a solar mass, it shines at just 58 percent of the luminosity of the Sun, its radius 0.9 solar. Like most stars with planets, 55 Cnc is rich in metals, its iron content (relative to hydrogen) quite high, 2.2 times that of the Sun. 55 Cancri is also a double star . Moving along with it through space is a dim 13th magnitude (13.7) class M red dwarf (probably M6) that is at least 1040 AU away and takes at least 30,000 years to orbit. From 55 Cancri's planets, the neighbor would shine somewhat dimmer than Venus at her maximum as seen from Earth.
Written by Jim Kaler. Return to The Planet Project or go to STARS.
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Speculations
Like the planet of 51 Pegasi, 55 Cancri b is a massive planet orbiting extremely close to its sun. Although the two planets probably share much in common, the small differences in mass and distance may make them significantly different. Both worlds are massive enough to maintain atmospheres, but the close proximity to its star may boil away any atmosphere around 51 Pegasi b. This may not be the case for 55 Cancri b, which lies twice as far away from its sun. But the closer a planet is to its star, the larger amounts of heavy elements are available during formation. So, like 51 Pegasi b, 55 Cancri b may have a substantial rocky core. The result of a massive rocky core and a jovian atmosphere is like a hybrid between Venus and Jupiter.
The sources of heat on 55 Cancri b are varied and immense. The intense heat of the close sun contributes greatly, but there is more to it than that. As on 51 Pegasi b, the tidal forces of such a close orbit to a star may make 55 Canceri b's rocky core extremely tectonically active, forming numerous volcanoes. Depending on how torturously hot the surface gets and how much pressure is created by the thick atmosphere, the "rocky" surface may be entirely molten. Outgassing due to the intense volcanism on 55 Cancri b would unleash large amounts of carbon dioxide, water, and sulfur dioxide into the atmosphere, tinting the clouds yellow, as on Venus. All of these are greenhouse gases, which would prevent the already scortching heat from escaping into space.
55 Cancri b would be a volcanically hyperactive world with a run away greenhouse effect positioned uncomfortably close to its sun. Such a world would be inconceivably hostile to life as we know it. Near the surface, sulfuric acid rains may plumet into seas of molten rock. Super bolts of lightning from Earth sized sulfurous clouds may flash on the night side of the planet and titanic volcanoes may throw liquid rock for thousands of miles. Any moons, if they exist, of 55 Cancri b would be as barren as Mercury, blazing in the heat of the sun.
Like the planet of 51 Pegasi, 55 Cancri b is a massive planet orbiting extremely close to its sun. Although the two planets probably share much in common, the small differences in mass and distance may make them significantly different. Both worlds are massive enough to maintain atmospheres, but the close proximity to its star may boil away any atmosphere around 51 Pegasi b. This may not be the case for 55 Cancri b, which lies twice as far away from its sun. But the closer a planet is to its star, the larger amounts of heavy elements are available during formation. So, like 51 Pegasi b, 55 Cancri b may have a substantial rocky core. The result of a massive rocky core and a jovian atmosphere is like a hybrid between Venus and Jupiter.
The sources of heat on 55 Cancri b are varied and immense. The intense heat of the close sun contributes greatly, but there is more to it than that. As on 51 Pegasi b, the tidal forces of such a close orbit to a star may make 55 Canceri b's rocky core extremely tectonically active, forming numerous volcanoes. Depending on how torturously hot the surface gets and how much pressure is created by the thick atmosphere, the "rocky" surface may be entirely molten. Outgassing due to the intense volcanism on 55 Cancri b would unleash large amounts of carbon dioxide, water, and sulfur dioxide into the atmosphere, tinting the clouds yellow, as on Venus. All of these are greenhouse gases, which would prevent the already scortching heat from escaping into space.
55 Cancri b would be a volcanically hyperactive world with a run away greenhouse effect positioned uncomfortably close to its sun. Such a world would be inconceivably hostile to life as we know it. Near the surface, sulfuric acid rains may plumet into seas of molten rock. Super bolts of lightning from Earth sized sulfurous clouds may flash on the night side of the planet and titanic volcanoes may throw liquid rock for thousands of miles. Any moons, if they exist, of 55 Cancri b would be as barren as Mercury, blazing in the heat of the sun.
There are strong sources of heat on 55 Cancri b. One of them is the intense radiation from the nearby star, but another source is tidal friction caused by the star's gravity. The planet's surface may even be completely molten. Enormous volcanic eruptions would fill the atmosphere with carbondioxide and sulphur compounds, producing a thick yellowish cloud cover. Any daring explorer would be crushed by the immense pressure at ground level, and vaporized by the heat - and he could not even see the disk of dust recently discovered around 55 Cancri.
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Whether looking up into the heavens or down into the valley below, the views from the high point of Lick Observatory can't be beat on a clear day or night. Its overlook from the south end of the valley boasts views to the San Francisco Bay and beyond (some say they can see Mount Shasta). Lick Observatory was built in 1888 by the philanthropist James Lick, a Pennsylvania native who originally came to the valley to start a mill and wound up owning much of downtown San Francisco after the gold rush. In its early days, Lick Observatory and the spectacular 27-mile winding roadway leading up to it was a huge tourist attraction heralded for offering the "most advanced astronomy appliances in the world." University of California Santa Cruz scientists still monitor the observatory's updated, world-class telescopes around the clock.
Valley cities use of orange-hued Low Pressure Sodium (LPS) lamps for most street lighting and parking lot illumination in deference to the observatory. Bright urban lighting impedes the ability to view faint distant objects, and the low freqency light waves can be more easily filtered.
Founded in 1888 with funding from the eccentric millionaire James Lick, the Lick Observatory is a world-class research institution, a leader in developing new instruments and observation techniques, and a center of learning. Located at Mt. Hamilton's 4200 foot mark, 14 miles east of San Jose, the facility has nine research-grade telescopes is its Shane 3-meter Reflector that University of California astronomers use to view the solar system and distant galaxies.
James Lick originally wanted to memorialize his life by constructing a pyramid on a block that he owned in downtown San Francisco. His astronomer friend, George Davidson, president of the California Academy of Sciences, made frequent visits to the ailing Lick's bedside and persuaded him that a telescope would be a more useful monument to his accomplishments. Lick died 12 years before his dream of building the world's greatest telescope was realized. He is buried at the base of the large reflector.
The observatory is open for public tours every day except Thanksgiving, Christmas eve and Christmas day. Weekday hours are12:30pm to 5pm; weekends from10am to 5pm. The observatory is a 20-mile drive from downtown San Jose, up a long, winding road that is sometimes covered in snow in the winter. Night visits are not allowed, except for events such as the Music of the Spheres concert series
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Anyone ever been to this Lick Observatory ?
Smurph, its near you . Think you could take a day trip and tell me if its worth going someday ?
thanks in advance
Valley cities use of orange-hued Low Pressure Sodium (LPS) lamps for most street lighting and parking lot illumination in deference to the observatory. Bright urban lighting impedes the ability to view faint distant objects, and the low freqency light waves can be more easily filtered.
Founded in 1888 with funding from the eccentric millionaire James Lick, the Lick Observatory is a world-class research institution, a leader in developing new instruments and observation techniques, and a center of learning. Located at Mt. Hamilton's 4200 foot mark, 14 miles east of San Jose, the facility has nine research-grade telescopes is its Shane 3-meter Reflector that University of California astronomers use to view the solar system and distant galaxies.
James Lick originally wanted to memorialize his life by constructing a pyramid on a block that he owned in downtown San Francisco. His astronomer friend, George Davidson, president of the California Academy of Sciences, made frequent visits to the ailing Lick's bedside and persuaded him that a telescope would be a more useful monument to his accomplishments. Lick died 12 years before his dream of building the world's greatest telescope was realized. He is buried at the base of the large reflector.
The observatory is open for public tours every day except Thanksgiving, Christmas eve and Christmas day. Weekday hours are12:30pm to 5pm; weekends from10am to 5pm. The observatory is a 20-mile drive from downtown San Jose, up a long, winding road that is sometimes covered in snow in the winter. Night visits are not allowed, except for events such as the Music of the Spheres concert series
............................................................
Anyone ever been to this Lick Observatory ?
Smurph, its near you . Think you could take a day trip and tell me if its worth going someday ?
thanks in advance
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Uh Judge, isnt that the 4k page 911 thread .
I am not sure how that compares to a newly
discovered planet.:shrug:
